Corrosion resistance for food prep

[Lucabrasi]

I started in the knife game in kitchen knives. Primarily the Japanese high end hand made type. In that world the majority of the truly sought after blades are fully carbon blades. Often blue 1 or 2 or white 1 or 2 clad in soft iron. Ability to care for the reactivity in the kitchen seems to be a point of pride, and doesn’t generally keep enthusiasts from getting them. After rotating through dozens of knives I mostly settled on at least stainless clad carbon in my kitchen knives. But I’ve gone way deeper down that rabbit hole than I have pocket knives.

I find that when the topic of food use comes up in pocket knives people focus on corrosion resistance more than other traits. The spydiechef seems to have set the standard and now any blade that is remotely intended for kitchen use has folks clamoring for lc200n.

I guess I’m wondering why the emphasis on corrosion resistance on blades you’re likely to wash as they are being used. No one seems to be all that concerned with it in the kitchen knife world. Edge taking seems to be the primary concern.

Corrosion resistance to me is more important in a knife I have in my pocket at all times than it is for a knife on a cutting board. I’m much more likely to sweat on a blade in my pocket than I am to cut a lemon and not at least rinse the blade off. What do you all think?

[Ric]

I think - overall, a kitchen knife gets wetter than a pocket knife.
When I cut 12 tomatoes it's a wet mess. I have wet hands and have to rinse the knife.
Here a fix blade has the advantage of having no pivot area with tiny pieces where liquid can be trapped.

Inside the pocket it's not wet be more humid.
It also can dry daily overnight.

[Karl_H]

As long as you can keep the pivot area dry/oiled, I don’t think steel corrosion resistance matters very much. I prefer the 5-8 Cr PM tool steels for folding knives (and stainless cladding, if it is an option). I generally do not have issues keeping the pivot area dry or well oiled.

[VooDooChild]

The kitchen knife world takes advantage of geometry first. Since they are making a knife to be used in the kitchen, and not a knife to be used as an edc, or a knife to be used for camping, etc.

Higher end kitchen knives are totally different than cheap ones. Cheap kitchen knives will get run through the dish washer 3 times a week.

[Albatross]

Non-stainless steels have the ability to take more abuse than stainless steels. A slight increase in maintenance(for me) is worth it for the stronger edge, and higher edge retention.

I stepped out of my comfort zone recently, and began using a K390 PM2 in the kitchen. Careful use and cleaning meant no corrosion issues anywhere on the blade, including the pivot area and liners. I have incorporated sone intentional contact with the cutting board, to see how the steel reacts to more "normal" scenarios. Pushing harder than necessary to chop through something like a potato, gives a nice contact with the cutting board. So far, I'm pleased with how it's performed.

[Wartstein]

I use all of my folders for food prep occasionally - or actually probably more often than many others here, since I do prepare simple meals while on the road or in the outdoors quite frequently (and yes, I just like to use them at home in the kitchen too).

Though admittedly not as well as a dedicated kitchen knife, my Enduras / Stretches for bigger - or my Chap for smaller stuff actually perform very good in that capacity.

Like in all other areas I use my folders: Also in food prep I found that I personally just don´t need total corrosion resistance at all. No rust problems, just a beautiful Patina on HAP 40 and some little dark spots on my VG 10 Delica after I did not clean of a very salty liquid and put the knife away for a month or so.

[JMM]

More often than not I've got a tool steel blade with me, and I make it a practice to apply/keep a very light coating of mineral oil on all my tool steel blades, it's food safe, easy to find, doesn't go rancid, and keeps my tool steel blades in great condition, it works great... just my 2c.

:)

[Takuan]

For me, food prep happens in two different settings: (1) in the kitchen, where there is a sink to wash my knife, clean towels to dry it, and a knife block to store it in, and (2) camping/hiking, where I have limited water resources (often schlepped from a stream or hand-pump), only one towel (the minimum recommended by the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy), and no clean/dry place to store the knife (just my sweaty pocket). In the kitchen, corrosion resistance is less important because I can care for my knife properly, but in the woods, I need a steel that can tolerate a bit more neglect. Since gunk inevitably gets down in the pivot of a folder, having something like LC200N in the Spydiechef is nice so that corrosion doesn’t start in the nooks and crannies that I can’t easily clean in the field.